♪ ♪ ♪ the ramon, mag

often called the nobel paez price of the east. in 2017 it was won by vo thi hoang yen. she lives in vietnam's business capital. ho chi minh. in 2005 she set up the drd, the center for disability research and capacity development. the ngo's goaoal iss to help pee with disabilities. today she is known as a pioneer of disability support in vietnam. of the 93 million people living in vietnam, over 6 million have a disability. the country is largely buddhist and many believe that disabled people are beingng punished for transgressions in a past life. it's common for them to be didismissed as useless to socie.

>> yen provivides scholarships disabled youth, supporting their studies at university. she also redeveloped a building in ho chi minh to make it accessible for people with disabilities to visit and socialize. the drd has supported 1,800 people so far. some have used their university education to get jobs and earn their independence. >> discover how yen is supporting the independence of vietnamese people with

disabilities. the drd office is a 30-minute drive from central ho chi minh. food is the weekly staff meeting. >> the team is made up of 14 people who work together to support youth with disabilities.

the drd distributes scholarships of around 600 u.s. dollars a year. they also help with employment and everyday life, even providing wheelchairs and crutches for those who need them. the website team makes sure that information on scholarships and drd events is kept up to date. the site also has information on laws andnd government decisions about support for disabled people. the group's work is funded by domestic and international donations. team member nuang ten tun went to scholarship on a scholarship.

he was born in the neighboring province. at 6 months old poll owe left his left leg paralyzed. in 2006 he entered a ho chi minh university to study english. but his family is poor and within three months he found himself running out of funds. that's when a friend introduced him to the

while still i in collegege, tun vormted as a teacher for the drd's english language program. after graduating he began workrking there officially. he says that he was inspired by something yen had told him before.

this i.t. firm in central ho chi minh develops custom software for vietnamese businesses. it has around 300 staff, five of whom are disabled workers introduced by the drd. this man studied i.t. at university on a drd scholarship. he joined the firm last year. dat is visually impaired. today he is working on a corporate website. he uses screen reading software which reads the text on the screen out loud. dat credits interview practice at the drd with landing him the job.

>> there are now about 400 companies that work with the drd. an old college friend of yen's is visiting the drd office.

she is an accountant has donated part of her salary to the drd for the past yen hopes to use her friend's donation to support disabled people who can't find work because any lack education. her donation will fund a two-o-month scholarship for a bookkeeping course. today they are interviewing

applicants. all ten candidates are already at university or are graduates. any don't fit yen's undereducated criteriaen. she asks why they >> yen explains their privileged position to

yen decides to leave the scholarship onn hold for now. she encncrages the group to trust in their own yen was born in 1966 in a poor farming village in the southern province of donnai. she was the youngest of five girls. as a toddler she caught polio which affected her legs. her father died during her last

year of high school. but her sisters study at ho chi minh university of economics where she trained to become an accountant. although she took her resume to various employers after graduation she didn't get any interviews. six years later she finally secured an interview as a newly established private

delighted to have finally found work yb yen left the room. but she worried the secretary was watching her uneven steps. the next week yen's worst fears were confirmed.

>> the company n never c contac heher again. yen helped run her sister's store to keep her family from worrying. but she suffered many sleepless nights, and even began to consider suicide. two months later, she made a life changing

>> at the time vietnam was undergoing major change. the doimoi economic reforms had just come into effect. new information was coming in frfrom abroad. yen brushed up on her english to learn about the international disabled community. she came across a researcher looking for ways to help disabled people achieve independence. professor glenn white of the university of kansas, yen

reached out. an american organization gave her a scholarship so she could study with the professor for four years. she returned to vietnam in 2004. the following year she and three disabled friends set up the drd. any wanted to support other people facing the same issues and to help them achieve independence.

>> yen began by focusing on schoholarships f for disabled pe universitity. mamany who managed to makake it college are fororced too leave becausee their families can noo longnger afford too k keep them there. she started out using her own savings. but within a year was able to get international support. yen began speaking to young people with disabilities which led to a new idea. yen rented a one-story building in central ho chi minh and made

it into a space for people with disabilities. she made it accessible, so that anyone c could visit whehenevery wanteded. it hosted concerts and dance events so disabled people could socialize. yen also set up english classes and public speaking lessons. this is nuinhao he studied at university and a scholar and he is from a farming village about 200 kilometers from ho chi minh.

he contracted polio at age 2 which affected his ability to walk. as a child he was often verbally abused by hao avoidided other peoplee for years. but he changed throuough socializing at the drd.

>> the drd began a new project in 2016, a digital map for disabled people. tung is leading the proroject. the map shows wheelchair accessible buildings i includin public buildings and commercial spaces. >> this is a s shoppingg mall io chi minh. users can click for details. the map shows if the entrance has a ramp and whether the door is wide enough for a wheelchair. you can also check the elevators

and bathrooms. if it's accessible, then it's shown in blue. if not, then it's red. the program was developed by a university in ho chi minh. information can be added from any smartphone and the drdrd is encouraging everyone, disabled or not, to add to the map. yen explains that the program has more long-term goals as well.

>> today and yen and tung are investigating new areas. there are currently 4500 entries on the digital map. the drd plans to increase that number to 10,000 over the next six months. they start at the central post office. it was built over a century ago under french rule and has since become a tourist attraction. steps prohibit access for anyone in a wheelchair. tung uses crutches to examine the inside. he looks at the height of the

counters. these are too high for wheelchair >> it isn't easy to navigate the city's sidewalks

>> the two are forced to make their way along the crowded road. their next destination is the bus station. in 2010 vietnam passed new laws on accessibility. all new public buildings from 2015 onwards must be designed with accessibility in mind the bus station was built in 2017. it provides easy access to wheelchair users. but yen has concerns.

>> also most of the buses themselves are not wheelchair accessible. there is an accessible toilet at the terminal. tung attempts to enter the door closes too quickly to get in. and there is a ridge along the entrance. it seems legal requirements alone are not enough to build an accessible city.

the next day, tung goes to a city to the west of ho chi minh. he wants to extend their map's reach. it's another economic hub at the mouth of the meikong delta. tung has spoken to a disability group in the city to ask for their help. around 25 disabled people and college students have gathered to meet him. tung and drd staff explain how to add information to the they break off into four teams to explore several hospitals and

shops. >> the drd plans to work with volunteers across the country to ensure its map covers as much ground as possible. vietnam's disabled community is looking to change society. yen's push for more independence

continues. ♪ ♪

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